14∞40.74N - 39∞54.73W --> 14∞22.96N - 040∞32.08W
In the middle of the night I wake up hearing the change of the noise that is always with us: over a certain speed, the sound of the water on the hull changes from an 'allegro ma non troppo' to a 'basso continuo'. I can also hear the rain on the deck.
So I get out of my bunk and I climb the stairs to the cockpit. There are Simon and Piers, under the rain, excited by 30 knots of wind and for the boat flyng at remarkable speed.
Then Simons says: "You see what happens when you catch a fish like that Marlin yesterday!?"
Neptune's revenge?!
It is not my watch but it's impossible for me to go back to sleep, so I get dressed with my rain suit and my boots. Simon and Piers go back to sleep, it's Wills' watch now.
The wind changes quickly from 30 knots to 15, then 30, then suddenly no more wind and a lot of rain. Even the waves seem to have disappeared, swallowed by the cloud's darkness. Then again 20 knots, but in another direction, and so on. We're in the middle of several squalls.
With half the jib furled and two reefs in the main sail Will and I start to play with the radar, looking to avoid the most intense squalls. On the radar, an area of 3 miles around us is bright-red coloured.
We can react 'live' to the formation of the squalls. And thanks to the radar we can find, sometimes, a corridor between. A better spectacle than most BBC TV series...
After three hours the squalls are gone, we're back on course with full jib and 15 knots of wind, I go back to bed for an hour of sleep before my 5 o'clock solo 'Cock watch'.
In the morning we notice that the squalls have done a real good job washing the cockpit of the 'fish everywhere' smell of the day before. Also, we are really pleased finding a 20 kg fish fillet in our fridge.
Lunch and dinner are marlin-based. Fresh miles-zero product. Delicious.
Half way Champagne